Charley Rosen on NBA Big Men!
Posted: Wed Sep 23, 2009 1:57 am
http://msn.foxsports.com/nba/story/1008 ... ty-big-men
Why there's a shortage of quality big men
While NBA rosters are crowded with guards and forwards of every size and description, back-to-the-basket, tough-hombre centers are the league's most endangered species.
Consider, for example, the plentitude of variously accomplished big men who prowled the lanes from 1977 to 1988: Hakeem Olajuwon, Moses Malone, Bob Lanier, Elvin Hayes, Patrick Ewing, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Artis Gilmore, Kevin McHale, Robert Parish, Willis Reed, Nate Thurmond, Wes Unseld, Bill Cartwright, Joe Barry Carroll and Bill Walton.
On the other hand, the very best of today's equivalents include Yao Ming (who's injured and whose future is uncertain), Tim Duncan (who has many more good years behind him than ahead of him), Shaquille O'Neal (definitely on his last legs), Zydrunas Ilgauskas (going, going and almost gone), and Dwight Howard (who's still a work in progress).
Why, then, is there such a shortage of prime-time bigs these days?
# Because many young big men watch endless highlights of NBA action and busy themselves playing basketball video games. Plus, they're primarily interested in fancy handling, dunking, shooting 3-pointers and blocking shots.
# This limited vision of what bigs can and should do is reinforced when they see 7-footers like Andrea Bargnani and Dirk Nowitzki play like small forwards.
# Besides, most fledgling centers don't want to bang around in the paint or learn the footwork specific to effective low-post play. Practice, after all, is boring,
# Most importantly, there's a dearth of talented big-men coaches at the high school, AAU and college levels.
Let's examine the best of the NBA's young (under 30) centers to try to determine which — if any — of them might blossom into the type of fire-eating, Bogarting big man that can dominate the middle like the greats of yesteryear.
# Al Jefferson (24 years old) doesn't play much defense and isn't interested in passing but has the most developed, the most ornery and the most versatile low-post game of his peers. If only Jefferson played for a better team than the T-Wolves he'd certainly be a headline performer.
# Kendrick Perkins (24) has evolved to the point where he can use his massive body to great advantage in the pivot. Plus, the young man just loves to bang at both ends of the court. However, will the presence of Rasheed Wallace dramatically curtail Perkins' playing time and rate of development?
# Pau Gasol (29) isn't young anymore and is more of a tricky low-post scorer than a forceful one. Yet because of the paucity of his rivals, he nevertheless belongs near the top of this particular list.
# Emeka Okafor (27) is as good as he's ever going to be — a somewhat forceful role player with limited offense.
# Nene (27) certainly has the goods. He's a powerhouse with a surprisingly good touch, but he needs to be more consistent. The fact that he doesn't get sufficient touches to get into a prolonged groove is decisive in this regard.
# Andrew Bogut (24) is perhaps the most savvy of the young bigs and also possesses very good hands. But he makes too many mistakes with the ball, is injury-prone (he's missed over 21 percent of Milwaukee's games in the past three seasons) and he lacks the kind of top-of-the-line talent that can boost him to the apex of his position.
# Amare Stoudemire (26) is a face-up and a screen-and-roll player who rarely ventures into the low post. Indeed, his modus operandi resembles a power forward more than it does a true center.
# Tyson Chandler (26) doesn't scare opponents when he has the ball in his hands unless he's about to throw down a putback dunk or a lob pass. In addition to his offensive limitations, Chandler is a magnet for personal fouls. In any event, he's found his niche as an erratic role player.
# Andris Biedrins (23) has the same strengths (rebounding, help defense and blocking shots) as Chandler and is even more of a liability on offense. Also, Biedrins only plays with his back to the basket on defense.
# Eddy Curry (26) has the inside skills and the bulk to be an effective post-up scorer. However, his inability to rebound, defend or pass will prevent him from becoming a dreadnaught big man.
# Darko Milicic (24) has all of the necessary tools to excel at this position, but waiting for him to realize his potential is like waiting for Godot.
# Chris Kaman (27) has an effective — if robotic — drop step and jump hook that he can use going either right or left. He's also an above-average rebounder and shot-blocker. Too bad he's athletically challenged.
# Greg Oden (21) has the power to succeed, but his offense is still sloppy and limited. Moreover, he can't seem to play defense without fouling, which curtails his playing time and slows his development. However, since young bigs normally require three seasons to either reach their NBA maturity or prove to be unsalvageable busts, it's still possible — though not probable — that Oden can become a monster in the middle.
# Brook Lopez (21) is another young player who has a considerable upside. But, because he plays for the woeful Nets, Lopez will be allowed to develop his game without the pressure that Oden has. It could even happen that Lopez will — later than sooner — catch and surpass Oden.
# Andrew Bynum (21) has perhaps the most potential of all the young centers, but after four years in the league, he remains a stranger in paradise.
On the other hand, it's quite possible that the NBA game will eventually become a haven for small-ball and small-ballers — where triple-X-sized players will only be required to defend, set screens, block shots, rebound and shoot layups.
Or perhaps in 10 years, the league will be chock full of 7-foot point guards.
Why there's a shortage of quality big men
While NBA rosters are crowded with guards and forwards of every size and description, back-to-the-basket, tough-hombre centers are the league's most endangered species.
Consider, for example, the plentitude of variously accomplished big men who prowled the lanes from 1977 to 1988: Hakeem Olajuwon, Moses Malone, Bob Lanier, Elvin Hayes, Patrick Ewing, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Artis Gilmore, Kevin McHale, Robert Parish, Willis Reed, Nate Thurmond, Wes Unseld, Bill Cartwright, Joe Barry Carroll and Bill Walton.
On the other hand, the very best of today's equivalents include Yao Ming (who's injured and whose future is uncertain), Tim Duncan (who has many more good years behind him than ahead of him), Shaquille O'Neal (definitely on his last legs), Zydrunas Ilgauskas (going, going and almost gone), and Dwight Howard (who's still a work in progress).
Why, then, is there such a shortage of prime-time bigs these days?
# Because many young big men watch endless highlights of NBA action and busy themselves playing basketball video games. Plus, they're primarily interested in fancy handling, dunking, shooting 3-pointers and blocking shots.
# This limited vision of what bigs can and should do is reinforced when they see 7-footers like Andrea Bargnani and Dirk Nowitzki play like small forwards.
# Besides, most fledgling centers don't want to bang around in the paint or learn the footwork specific to effective low-post play. Practice, after all, is boring,
# Most importantly, there's a dearth of talented big-men coaches at the high school, AAU and college levels.
Let's examine the best of the NBA's young (under 30) centers to try to determine which — if any — of them might blossom into the type of fire-eating, Bogarting big man that can dominate the middle like the greats of yesteryear.
# Al Jefferson (24 years old) doesn't play much defense and isn't interested in passing but has the most developed, the most ornery and the most versatile low-post game of his peers. If only Jefferson played for a better team than the T-Wolves he'd certainly be a headline performer.
# Kendrick Perkins (24) has evolved to the point where he can use his massive body to great advantage in the pivot. Plus, the young man just loves to bang at both ends of the court. However, will the presence of Rasheed Wallace dramatically curtail Perkins' playing time and rate of development?
# Pau Gasol (29) isn't young anymore and is more of a tricky low-post scorer than a forceful one. Yet because of the paucity of his rivals, he nevertheless belongs near the top of this particular list.
# Emeka Okafor (27) is as good as he's ever going to be — a somewhat forceful role player with limited offense.
# Nene (27) certainly has the goods. He's a powerhouse with a surprisingly good touch, but he needs to be more consistent. The fact that he doesn't get sufficient touches to get into a prolonged groove is decisive in this regard.
# Andrew Bogut (24) is perhaps the most savvy of the young bigs and also possesses very good hands. But he makes too many mistakes with the ball, is injury-prone (he's missed over 21 percent of Milwaukee's games in the past three seasons) and he lacks the kind of top-of-the-line talent that can boost him to the apex of his position.
# Amare Stoudemire (26) is a face-up and a screen-and-roll player who rarely ventures into the low post. Indeed, his modus operandi resembles a power forward more than it does a true center.
# Tyson Chandler (26) doesn't scare opponents when he has the ball in his hands unless he's about to throw down a putback dunk or a lob pass. In addition to his offensive limitations, Chandler is a magnet for personal fouls. In any event, he's found his niche as an erratic role player.
# Andris Biedrins (23) has the same strengths (rebounding, help defense and blocking shots) as Chandler and is even more of a liability on offense. Also, Biedrins only plays with his back to the basket on defense.
# Eddy Curry (26) has the inside skills and the bulk to be an effective post-up scorer. However, his inability to rebound, defend or pass will prevent him from becoming a dreadnaught big man.
# Darko Milicic (24) has all of the necessary tools to excel at this position, but waiting for him to realize his potential is like waiting for Godot.
# Chris Kaman (27) has an effective — if robotic — drop step and jump hook that he can use going either right or left. He's also an above-average rebounder and shot-blocker. Too bad he's athletically challenged.
# Greg Oden (21) has the power to succeed, but his offense is still sloppy and limited. Moreover, he can't seem to play defense without fouling, which curtails his playing time and slows his development. However, since young bigs normally require three seasons to either reach their NBA maturity or prove to be unsalvageable busts, it's still possible — though not probable — that Oden can become a monster in the middle.
# Brook Lopez (21) is another young player who has a considerable upside. But, because he plays for the woeful Nets, Lopez will be allowed to develop his game without the pressure that Oden has. It could even happen that Lopez will — later than sooner — catch and surpass Oden.
# Andrew Bynum (21) has perhaps the most potential of all the young centers, but after four years in the league, he remains a stranger in paradise.
On the other hand, it's quite possible that the NBA game will eventually become a haven for small-ball and small-ballers — where triple-X-sized players will only be required to defend, set screens, block shots, rebound and shoot layups.
Or perhaps in 10 years, the league will be chock full of 7-foot point guards.